


LOOK WHAT THE WIND DRAGGED IN.

by orpheusaki



Series: THE ANTARCTIC ANIMAL SANCTUARY. [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Animal Conservationist AU, DreamSMP ensemble saving animals in the Antartic, Everyone is happy!, Found Family, Gen, Philza is a lovely father to all gremlin children, Ranboo is incredibly confused, SleepyBoysInc - Freeform, Techno 'I am indifferent to all these fluffy animals' Blade, Tommy is a raccoon, Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit are Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:34:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29706885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orpheusaki/pseuds/orpheusaki
Summary: "Why is Wilbur in the fish tank?" Techno asks before he can think better of it.Niki looks up at him from her place on the floor, surrounded by shedding penguins fur and half chewed fish, her eyes creased into little crescent moons as she grins, "Wilbur is showing Ranboo the different fishes we feed the penguins!""And he couldn't have done that standing outside the tank?""Apparently not," Ranboo nervously chimes in.Or;The Antarctic Animal Sanctuary has recently opened up an intern programme, and though Ranboo's not expecting a racoon living in the vents and a penguin army at his disposal — he can tell that his stay with the other conservationists is going to be eventful (if Techno will ever stop glaring at him).
Relationships: Ranboo & Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson
Series: THE ANTARCTIC ANIMAL SANCTUARY. [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2183181
Comments: 45
Kudos: 659





	LOOK WHAT THE WIND DRAGGED IN.

**Author's Note:**

> animal conservationist au!! please note that there might be some upsetting imagery about the rescued animals, but nothing gory or ill-inteded! this is all fluff and comfort <3 (also, this is no where near geographically nor ecologically correct, so just imagine this takes place in a real-life minercaft world, and this 'Antarctic' is the snow biome — but bigger).

"What is that."

Techno doesn't mean for that to come out so blunt, or for it to come out at all — since he's fairly certain addressing people as 'that' isn't the nicest way to meet new people nor is it a way to make a good first impression. Regardless, Techno looks as shocked at himself as the stranger does, surprised he's  _ so  _ sleep deprived that he's forgotten how to talk to other human beings.

The stranger looks terrified, "Uh, Ranboo?"

Techno raises a brow, _the hell is a_ _ Ranboo? _

"Are you asking me that or are you telling me?"

If possible, the unknown person with two toned hair (Techno might have made a witty comment about that, but given his hair is bright pink, perhaps it's not his place to make fun of questionable hair statements) pales in more fear, somehow shrinking in on themselves and hunching their shoulders to appear smaller than they actually are (Techno can already tell this person is unfairly tall, which only aggravates him even more).

Wilbur snorts, materialising out of thin air (the food pantry) and patting the stranger on the back kindly, making them lurch forward in surprise, "Don't let Techno scare you Ranboo, he's actually a big softie."

Techno scowls, but before he can say something insulting to save what little of his reputation remains, Phil appears from behind him, poking Techno childishly in the ribs and making him jump.

Phil chuckles loudly when Techno looks absolutely betrayed, turning to 'Ranboo' with a wide grin, "It's true, he's actually really cranky right now because he stayed up all night helping one of our polar bears give birth."

"No way!" Ranboo cries in excitement, all his apprehension towards Techno seemingly replaced with adoration, face shining so bright Techno wants to squint, "How did it go?"

The older man frowns, not sure what else to do with his expression as everyone stares at him expectantly (Wilbur and Phil are smirking at him),

"Fine."

That answer, though plain and perhaps rude in nature, seems like more than enough for Ranboo, whose smile impossibly grows brighter and nods eagerly. He's practically bubbling under his skin when Wilbur catches it and laughs, hooking an arm around Ranboo's neck and pulling him close, "Would you like to see them Ranboo? You could even name one!"

"Really?" Ranboo asks at the same time Techno states a monotonous ' _ Absolutely not _ .'

"Of course!" Wilbur gushes, ignoring Techno completely as he ruffles Ranboo's hair like he was a little kid and pulls him towards the infant recovery centre, "You can also meet Niki! She's probably feeding the baby penguins right now."

Techno immediately thinks that's a terrible idea, and he opens his mouth to express that — only to be cut off by Phil grabbing onto his shoulder softly. He looks back at Phil, frowning deeply when he sees the man give him a knowing smile, shaking his head to let them go.

He huffs, standing back as Wilbur and Ranboo walk off, chatting excitedly about baby bears and otters. When the two of them finally make their way out of earshot, Techno turns to face Phil abruptly, narrowing his eyes suspiciously as Phil laughs at his expression.

"Don't look so constipated, Techno," he laughs when Techno looks appalled, "That's just Ranboo."

"So I've heard. Another one of your kids you've never told me about?" Techno asks, appreciating the way Phil manages to look both sheepish and unapologetic all at once.

"He's a intern." Phil replies instead of addressing the accusation, "I told you, remember? That we were opening up an intern programme for undergraduates."

"Huh, and people actually applied?"

Phil looks incredibly offended as he answers with an incredulous cry, "Techno! We got over twenty  _ thousand _ applications."

"We  _ did _ ?" Techno asks incredulously, if not a little disbelievingly.

The Antarctic Animal Sanctuary was a closely knit group of people, occasionally harbouring the overseas experts and workers for special cases — but even then, it was a humble little (not really) sanctuary built on years of saving and rescuing. But these things are as normal as breathing is to Techno; feeding the Walruses and playing with the rabbits. It's easy to forget that beyond all that, it is a real  _ job,  _ since it hardly feels like one.

This is what  _ living  _ is, for Techno, here at the Sanctuary.

Phil rolls his eyes, "You seem to forget that we're actually a pretty big deal."

"We rescue little fluffy animals for a living." Techno explains bluntly, as if this were to be a negative out of all the other horribly traumatic things they did at the Antarctic Animal Sanctuary (such as rehabilitating baby birds with 90's pop music and playing hide and seek with snow rabbits). "How on earth did twenty  _ thousand  _ people find that exciting?"

"It probably looks banging on your job application," Tommy suddenly says, walking into the general lounge area covered in snow and ice, his far too big puffer jacket completely engulfing him. The cold air follows him, washing off of him in a large cloud of icy smoke that makes Phil shiver.

Techno snorts, watching the kid slowly begin to peel off his outdoor equipment to reveal his annoying signature red and white shirt underneath, "What do you know about a job? You're like twelve."

Tommy mimics Techno's expression… if Techno had an allergic reaction and got hit by a bus in the process.

He frowns, "I don't look like that."

" _ I don't look like that, _ " Tommy copies, his voice high and squeaky.

Techno turns to stare at Phil in exasperation, cursing the day he ever decided that permanently moving to the Antarctic to save animals with his friend and mentor would ever be a good idea, "I hate your children." He admits bluntly, ignoring the way Tommy gasps in offence.

Phil's mouth twitches, "I thought you liked Wilbur?"

As if on queue, a loud crash followed by the infamous sounds of Wilbur's borderline  _ insane  _ laughter echoes from the infant section, and Techno sighs tiredly, already moving his feet in the general direction of the chaos to see what damage Wilbur had inflicted upon the harmless animals this time (the Walruses have never quite been the same after Wilbur sang Bohemian Rhapsody all throughout mating season). Phil chuckles loudly at Techno's obvious exhaustion, but does nothing to offer any sort of support for the metal declination his children cause Techno on a regular basis.

Instead, he encourages Techno's depleting moral to live by flicking Tommy on the cheek affectionately, pushing him in the direction of Techno, "Go with Tech, Tommy. Go say hi to Ranboo, since he'll be staying with us for a couple months."

Before Techno can refuse, Tommy does so for him, yawning.

"Maybe later, I spent all day shoveling snow out of the rescue vans and now I just want to sleep."

Phil smiles, raising his brow at the grinning teenager, "Sleep? Or chat with Tubbo until four AM?"

The mention of his best friend on the other side of the planet ( _ "We met on Minecraft, Techno,"  _ Tommy would often complain whenever Techno addressed Tubbo as his pen-pal,  _ "Who the fuck has a pen pal? It's not the eighteen hundreds!" _ ) sends Tommy running in the direction of the bedrooms and living quarters, sticking his tongue out playfully at Phil before pausing to give Techno a cheeky smile, disappearing into the many long corridors.

Techno does not shake his head fondly as he watches the excitable teenager frolic away like some sort of happy lamb, turning to face Phil with a look of indifference (though from Phil's smirk perhaps he wasn't as monotonous as first anticipated). Quickly trying to distract himself from Phil's all too knowing gaze and the horror of becoming attached to yet  _ another _ one of Phil's children (if Wilbur wasn't bad news enough, Tommy came along soon after) — Techno takes a quick detour to the mini fridge placed in the corner of the room.

He can feel Phil's eyes on him as he reaches down to haphazardly grab four cans of coke, trying his best not to jostle Eret's half eaten tuna sandwich hidden under a charitable amount of newspaper.

Standing up quickly, drinks in hand, Techno clears his throat, tips of his ears burning, "You, uh — have any other surprises waiting for me to find?"

Phil grins, not missing how Techno's grabbed an extra drink for Ranboo before replying, "I accepted five out of the twenty thousand applications,"

He drops that with the utmost lacklustre care and casualty, and Techno only manages to hide his impressed fear behind a mask of neutrality a little too late, as Phil is giggling all over again. "The other four should be arriving later this week."

Techno throws his hands into the air lethargically, punching the air with absolutely enthusiasm, "Yipee. More new people!"

"Don't be too harsh on Ranboo!" Phil calls out belatedly, but Techno's already nodding absentmindedly, juggling the cans around so he can grab his keys from his back picker and scan the entry-card on the door to open up the infant recovery section.

"Wait, Techno," Phil suddenly says seriously, different from his regular tone that it startles Techno to look back at Phil. It's his work voice.

The older man softens his eyes, "How are the polar bears,  _ actually _ ?"

Techno pulls his card away from the door, leaning against it as he gives Phil a long look. He wasn't surprised that Techno's previous answer wasn't enough for Phil, especially given the nature of this specific case.

He sighs, "The cub is fine, underweight and a little too soft but manageable. Jack's with him now, doing some more check ups."

Phil raises a brow suspiciously, "But…?"

Techno bites his lower lip nervously, hands gripping the coke cans tightly, colds making the tips of his fingers numb, "But the mother's really weak. We don't — I don't think she'll make it through the week."

"Fuck," Phil grumbles frustratedly, "Poor girl."

_ Girl  _ was the adult polar bear who had arrived at the emergency clinic a few days prior. She was found a few miles off the sanctuary grounds, snow and ice falling around her heavily. There was no den in sight, no indication that she had a home she was trying to find or a home  _ at all.  _ It's rare, but it happens, winter comes too quickly, too harshly — and some innocent animals just can't keep up.

But that wasn't the reason for her emergency rescue; it was because she was thin as bone. Her fur sagging and skin paper thick as it hung off her frame —

And she was pregnant.

Techno had never felt true sorrow until they laid her out on the table, without any need for restraints since she was too weak to even raise her head; only to feel the unmistakable bump of an unborn cub beating away inside.

They didn't think either of them would survive the night. Or the next. Or the next. Or even the next. And then last night, he was born.

But she was slowly wilting away, perhaps having felt that she fulfilled her final duty; Girl was peacefully awaiting her exit.

While deep in thought, Techno hadn't realised how close Phil had moved, and before he could react, he was pulled into one of his soul gripping embraces.

Hugs from Philza were truly a marvel of magic, something incredibly profound and protective about the way Phil holds on like he's carrying you above ground. Like huge wings sprout from his back and grasp you tightly to preserve your warmth. Techno melts into it, unable to move his hands from the drinks but hoping it will suffice.

And it does, since when Phil pulls away he seems content with the look on Techno's face, patting his cheek kindly.

"Go on now," Phil whispers, "Go welcome Ranboo to the team. He reminds me a lot of you."

And then, he turns away, an unexplainable grace in his steps as he disappears into the corridor, no doubt wanting to see the last few days of Girl's spirit while it still rages on.

Techno stands there for a while, simply existing, before he finally turns back to the door, pulling out his key card and scanning it once more. The moment the door slides open, Techno feels the anxiety bleed out from his feet and dissipate into the floors, the bright and happy painted walls of baby animals and rainbows enough to make anyone optimistic.

While the Infancy Recovery centre was a place of worry and constant care, it's also the place newborn animals spend growing bigger and stronger — a place of hope.

Though, upon entering, Techno doesn't quite understand what's going on.

"Why is Wilbur in the fish tank?" He asks before he can think better of it.

Niki looks up at him from her place on the floor, surrounded by shedding penguins fur and half chews fishes, her eyes creased into little crescent moons as she grins, "Wilbur is showing Ranboo the different fishes we feed the penguins!"

"And he couldn't have done that  _ standing outside  _ the tank?"

"Apparently not," Ranboo nervously chimes in, and Techno has to  _ physically  _ restrain himself from snapping his head around to glare at the newcomer too quickly, not wanting them to fall into a cardiac arrest in front of the nestling of penguins (and you can never know if Philza is standing outside the door waiting to give you a stern lecture, so Techno thinks better of startling both Ranboo and the penguins alike).

Speaking of, they all seem to love Ranboo; the entire colony of fluffy white and grey hatchlings huddling together around his ankles.

Techno hopes he's frowning, but has a sneaky suspicion his facial muscles have betrayed him and he's smiling stupidly at the sight, "Well then, Ranboo, you seem to have accumulated a little fanclub."

The boy scratches the back of his neck nervously, eyes flitting from the penguins to the wall behind Techno (not a fan of eye contact, then), "Yeah, uh, I didn't really —"

"Ranboo's like a Disney princess!" Wilbur exclaims with absolutely not context, suddenly erupting from the fish tank with alarmingly vigour.

Techno looks at him with utmost distaste, debating whether or not he wants to entertain his best friends' strange antics or completely ignore him and hope he drowns (he's joking, mostly).

Niki must sense his apprehension and takes pity, chuckling as she fills him in. "The moment Ranboo walked in they all immediately huddled around him."

"Yeah!" Wilbur cries as he begins to climb out of the fish tank, the small fish all hiding on the opposite side of the tank to avoid the horrible beast that is Wilbur Soot, "It was so cute! They just left Niki and waddled with their little legs to try and climb Ranboo."

"Maybe they mistook him for the South pole," Techno grumbles, opting to pretend he didn't hear Ranboo snort at the bad joke.

"You must have pets at home then, Ranboo?" Niki asks kindly, cleaning up her spot with a towel and spray.

"I do, yeah," he starts awkwardly, attempting to step forward without tramping the excitable little fluffy balls of despair pooled around his ankles, "I have, uhm, a couple back home."

"A couple?" Techno asks, curiosity getting the better of him.

Ranboo looks nervous as he clarifies robotically, like he's reciting the declaration of independence (to two Europeans and an anarchist), "I think it was fourteen? A couple cats, parrots, rabbits, a dog and uhm — I have a cow? A few sheep. One horse. And a Chicken called Jonald."

The three conservationists watch on in astonishment as Ranboo lists off his many animals, and Techno can't help the laugh that escapes him at the abrupt ending. Ranboo looks completely mortified at that, staring helplessly as Techno hugs the drink cans close to his chest in an attempt to not drop them as his shoulders shake with laughter. Somehow, this only sets Techno off more.

"Jonald?" Techno asks through the laughter, and not after both Niki and Wilbur explode into a fit of giggles.

Ranboo looks a little troubled by this, nervous gaze flitting between the three of them shakily, but seems to realise quite quickly that the three of them aren't laughing  _ at  _ him. But rather, they find him quite humorous. Afterall, Jonald is a strange name for a chicken. And in general.

He eventually laughs along, relaxing his shoulders a bit, "Yeah, I'm not the best with names."

"What's your cow called?" Wilbur asks breathlessly, water droplets dripping from his hair and shirt.

"...Ranmoo."

Techno, who had just started to calm down, sputters out and chokes on another wave of laughter, actually unable to contain himself after seeing the absolute dread on Ranboo's face as he reveals the name of this poor cow. Like he just  _ knew  _ it would be equally if not more hilarious than the famed  _ Jonald _ .

"You're going to drop our drinks!" Niki cried in between her high pitched laughter, face red from trying to keep it contained to preserve what little was left of Ranboo's dignity.

Techno clears his throat, coughing to try and cover up the laughter that wouldn't stop climbing up his chest everytime he takes a look at the red that dusts Ranboo's cheeks. He throws one of the cans haphazardly behind him, hoping it knocks Wilbur out (but from the cry of joy and pop of the can, Techno's plan doesn't seem to have worked) before reaching below him to drop one into Niki's lap.

The two don't wait before they're gulping down the chilled drinks, and Techno frowns at their impoliteness, "Oi, you greedy nerds, I was going to have a toast for Ranboo."

Wilbur chokes on the drink, "A toast! Ah yes! Congratulations Ranboo MyBeloved — lovely name, I must say — on your new job of cleaning up walrus poop and crying over newborn snow rabbits!"

Niki cries out excitedly, "A truly joyous occasion!"

"You're both terrible," Techno mumbles under his breath, sighing inwardly as he turns to see Ranboo's still flushed face, "Catch."

With about the same poise and grace as a three legged Antarctic fox, Ranboo stumbles over the group of small hatchlings to catch the can before it drops, all of them chirping in refusal as their huddle of warmth breaks. Techno can't help but smile at the way Ranboo looks both mortified as himself and incredibly apologetic for the penguins.

"Welcome to the team, I guess." Techno finally announces, opening his own can as Ranboo states incredulously between the three of them and his drink.

"Thank you," he says quietly, hair covering his face as he looks down at the animals by his feet, but Techno can hear the smile in his voice. Ranboo then lifts his arm to open the drink, but pauses, raising his face to look startled.

Techno narrows his eyes a little worrisomely, "Not a fan of coke? We have others if you want."

"Uh, no, no… there's just — bite marks? On the can?"

"Oh, that's probably Tommy's doing." Techno replies monotonously, taking a hearty gulp of coke; missing the way Ranboo's eyes practically bulge out of his skull.

Wilbur snorts, twirling the half empty can in his hands leisurely as Niki grins.

"Tommy?"

"It's the racoon that lives in the vents," Wilbur hums, holding an arm out for Niki's empty can as he finishes his own, "Don't worry, he's harmless."

"Most of the time," Techno mumbles under his breath, but judging by the frightful look he gets from Ranboo, he's been heard.

Niki rolls her eyes, but doesn't miss the opportunity to slag off Tommy when he's not there to scream and shout about 'betrayal' and whatnot, "Just don't leave your food out unsupervised and you'll never have to run into him."

"Don't look so scared, newbie," Techno chuckles, walking over (and narrowly misses stepping on a puddle of waddling feet and fluffy tails) to pat him on the back kindly, though the younger boy jumps forward in surprise. Techno leans down, looking serious as he adds in a whisper, "He can smell fear."

Ranboo's eyes widen as Techno flashes him a toothy grin, canines sharp and eyes a sudden red; though it must've been a trick of the light. Since as the man stands up again, he has the same look of indifference as he did when Ranboo had first seen him.

Though, his eyes were much kinder. Ranboo had been accepted into the lower ranks, it seems. He finds himself hopeful for the next few months, excitement bubbling in his chest —

Before a baby penguin  _ immediately  _ pukes all over his trousers, because of _course_. The room erupts into laughter once more.

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what you think! this will be a series of chronological events taking place during ranboo's volunteering period! see u at the next one <3


End file.
